Team Tween Gets Even Tweener

If there is anything that illustrates the shallowness of the talent pool in the NBA it is the Warriors’ announcement that they’ve signed Cory Maggette for $50 million over five years.

With some serious cash to throw around after Baron Davis packed his documentary film crew and left for LA, there was an initial giddy feeling that the team would be able to make a splash with a roster-altering free agent signing. Reality quickly set in as the list of availables played out.

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Cory Maggette. Shooting. You’ll see a lot of this.

Gilbert Arenas? Already had him once and he wasn’t interested in coming back. Kurt Thomas? He’s 35 for God’s sake. Kwame Brown? Still a first round bust. DeSagana Diop? No, seriously, DeSagana Diop?

Suddenly Elton Brand, coming off a tough achilles tendon injury looked like a world beater. And he not only rejected the Warriors, he reportedly took less money to go to Philadelphia.

Which leaves Maggette. You’ve probably already read the knocks on him. He’s often injured, plays in spurts, wants to shoot first and pass later, and can need lots of attention. That’s all a given. He also scored over 20 a game last year, which is not that easy to find.

But the real deal is this: He’s been a complementary player so far. A nice added option with some scoring skills. Is it possible he will blossom under Don Nelson’s system and take a major step forward?

Sure, that could happen. But that’s not what you’re looking for from your major free agent acquistion. You’d like to see someone who’s been there and done it before.

Instead the Warriors get another promising, athletic, mid-sized NBA body with a potential upside. Golden State is making a franchise out of those guys. Major teams make big moves to transform themselves (see Boston Celtics). Until proven otherwise, Maggette is another example of Team Tween running in place.